Asia

2011

New York, April 7,
2011--With China in the midst of a sweeping crackdown on public dissent, U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should follow the example of Britain and
Germany and call for the immediate release of detained artist and social critic
Ai Weiwei and other detained journalists and dissidents, the Committee to
Protect Journalists said today. The two countries' foreign ministries have each
urged China to release Ai, according to Reuters.

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New York, April 6, 2011--The Committee to
Protect Journalists calls on members of the European Parliament to strongly criticize
the Chinese government's apparent
detention of artist and social activist Ai Weiwei. The European Parliament
is convening an emergency debate Thursday on Ai's disappearance, which may be
the latest unlawful detention in the government's onslaught against its
critics.

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New York, April 4,
2011--The disappearance of internationally renowned artist and commentator
Ai Weiwei is a disturbing indicator of the extent of the government's onslaught
against its critics, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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New York, March 31, 2001--The
Committee to Protect Journalists calls on the international diplomatic
community in Colombo
to help secure the release of Lanka
eNews website News Editor Bennet Rupasinghe. According to colleagues in Colombo and international
news reports, Rupasinghe was arrested by police after responding to a
summons. He was called to give a statement about allegedly threatening a
brother of a suspect who is in custody over the arson
attack on the site's office on January 31.

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New York, March 30,
2011--The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned by the dismissal of
two Guangzhou-based journalists who advocate for political reform amid
tightening restrictions on free expression. While several bloggers and
activists have disappeared or been detained
in the last month after anonymous calls for demonstrations in support of
political reform were published online, journalists in traditional media are now
also being targeted, CPJ said.

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China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Jiang Yu, today
denied having heard of Sydney-based Chinese author and blogger Yang Hengjun,
according to The Associated Press. We reported yesterday that Yang was missing,
presumed to be the latest high-profile writer to fall victim to the
government's aggressive roundup of critics who might respond to online calls
for a Chinese "Jasmine
revolution." Concern for Yang deepened today, after reports emerged that he
had called his sister in Guangzhou to say he had been detained. "Having a long
chat with old friends" was the pre-arranged phrase they used, AP reported.

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New York, March 29, 2011--Ross Dunkley,
founder and editor of the Myanmar Times
weekly newspaper, was released on bail from a Burmese prison today, according
to international
news reports.
Dunkley, an Australian citizen arrested February 10 amid tense negotiations
over the future of the weekly, had been denied several earlier requests for
release on bail.

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New York, March 28,
2011--Police indicted one online writer on anti-state charges in Sichuan
today and another disappeared in Guangzhou on Sunday, according to
international news reports. Both cases appear part of the Chinese Communist
Party's strenuous efforts to suppress their critics and pre-empt a "Jasmine Revolution"
in China, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.